Purnululu National Park is situated in the East
Kimberley region of Australia. It was established as a
World Heritage Site in the year 2000. The Outstanding
Universal Value of the site derives from Bungle Bungle,
a massif in the Wickham upland system. These are
sandstone karst depositions formed as conical towers
over millions of years. The site is unique, with such
landscape and mineral structures, and geological
process is ongoing. The vegetation is predominantly
Eucalyptus-dominated and has patches of grassland
with trees and shrubs of varying size.
Tourism has increased since 2000 after the designation of the site as a World Heritage Site. The indigenous people have been included in the park's management and all its tourism activities. The Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) and the State Party participate handle and manage all issues.
Prnululu National Park is one of the oldest
established national parks in Australia (1987). It is
located in the East Kimberley Region of northwestern
Australia (Munro & Moore 2013). The Outstanding
Universal Value of the site derives from a series of
unique beehive-shaped sandstone cone towers named
the Bungle Bungle Range (UNESCO; Williams 2005).
These are karst formations that have been created over
millions of years. With hundreds of rock art and burial
sites and ancient artefact collections, the site continues
to be an integral part of traditional indigenous society
(Williams 2005).
The Ord River surrounds the Park to the south-east and about 80,000 ha of conservation reserve to the north-west. The monsoon is quite extended and occurs anytime between November and March, and the mean annual rainfall is less than 650 mm. Average diurnal temperatures can range from 200C to 350C (Bureau of Meteorology 2005; Barrow et al. 2006).
The land is mainly eucalypt-dominated open woodland and mixed grassland. There are three main habitat types: spinifex uplands to the north and west, sandplains to the southeast and gorges within the Bungle Bungle massif (Barrow et al. 2006). To the northwest of Bungle Bungle Range is the Wickham land system, consisting of hard sandstone and conglomerate ranges, deeply incised gorges and land covered with lush riparian vegetation dominated by hard spinifex (Triodia intermedia) and scattered woody species (Corymbia (Eucalyptus) opaca, C. (E.) terminalis and E. brevifolia) (Woinarski 1992). Savanna grasslands allow the growth of C. (E.) collina, C. (E.) opaca, Lysiphyllum cunninghamii, Acacia spp., Dolichandrone heterophylla and soft spinifex (Triodia bitextura), Aristida spp. and Sarga spp. to the southeast of Bungle Bungle (Hoaston et al. 1997).
Although Purnululu National Park has not been
widely known in Australia until recently and remains
relatively inaccessible, it has become recognised
internationally for its exceptional natural beauty. The
prime scenic attraction is the extraordinary array of
banded, beehive-shaped cone towers comprising the
Bungle Bungle Range. These have become emblematic
of the Park and are internationally renowned among
Australia's natural attractions. The dramatically
sculptured structures, unrivalled in their scale, extent,
grandeur and diversity of form anywhere in the world,
undergo remarkable daily and seasonal variation in
appearance, including striking colour transition following
rain and with the positioning of the sun. The intricate
maze of towers is accentuated by sinuous, narrow, sheersided gorges lined with majestic Livistona fan palms.
These and the soaring cliffs up to 250 metres high are
cut by seasonal waterfalls and pools, creating the major
tourist attractions in the Park with evocative names such
as Echidna Chasm, Piccaninny and Cathedral Gorges. The
diversity of landforms and ecosystems elsewhere in the
Park are representative of the semi-arid landscape in
which Purnululu is located and provide a sympathetic
visual buffer for the massif.
The Bungle Bungles are, by far, the most outstanding example of cone karst in sandstones anywhere in the world and owe their existence and uniqueness to several interacting geological, biological, erosional and climatic phenomena. The sandstone karst of Purnululu National Park is of great scientific importance in demonstrating so clearly the process of cone karst formation on sandstone - a phenomenon recognised by geomorphologists only recently and still not completely understood. The Bungle Bungle Ranges of the Park also display to an exceptional degree evidence of geomorphic processes of dissolution, weathering and erosion in the evolution of landforms under a savannah climatic regime within an ancient, stable sedimentary landscape.
Several factors affect the landscape and
sandstone cones of Purnululu National Park. UNESCO
found in all its three inspections that the park
experienced an issue of coal mining. The 2005 State of
Conservation Report mentioned that there were no
significant threats associated with proposed mining
activities as the Panton Platinum Palladium mining
project had not proceeded. In 2011, the SoC (State of
Conservation Report) by WHC and IUCN mentioned that
another mining company, Tusk Mining, wanted to begin
a mining project in the buffer zone of the national park.
However, the World Heritage Committee (WHC) urged
the company to follow the Environmental Protection
and Biodiversity Conservation Act protocol and not
harm the property's Outstanding Universal Values
(UNESCO, WHC).
Previous State of Conservation Reports (2005, 2008 and 2011) noted the indigenous people's inclusion in the management of the heritage site. Although Purnululu was the first park in Western Australia to make provisions for traditional indigenous owners (Munroe & Moore 2013), it could not include them effectively in the development of the park management plan. The 2005 report mentions human resources management and attending to tourism with reference to the management of the park. The Western Australian government has been asked to implement the State Party's financial statements on developing tourist facilities and additional accommodation for the staff. Furthermore, Indigenous people provide better traditional practises to preserve the site's customs. These communities can also capitalise on economic development opportunities provided by park tourism (Munro & Moore 2013).
The 2011 report also mentioned the inclusion of additional land following the discussions in the 2005 and 2008 reports. The Purnululu Conservation Reserve (PCR) was extended by adding 62,458 ha of pastoral lands after the pastoral leases to the north and west of the property expired in 2015. The State Party confirms that 46,875 ha of land was incorporated and that the rest was included later, in 2015. The Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) was in charge of the overall management of the site. The IUCN 2020 assessment found the conservation status of Purnululu National Park to be "Good".
